Wimbledon, Beer & Sex: The Obvious Thing To Do

Jul082014

Point today: All marketing matters. From tennis to beer. When beer companies of all sorts see that taste buds don’t care which gender they accompany, then all beer will be elevated, everyone will have a better time of it, and progress will be made.

If you are interested in tennis, you know the Wimbledon just finished up. I happened to be in South Dakota with a dear friend who is a die-hard fan, so we watched together. I’ve never watched very much tennis on TV before – though rarely watch any sports on television so it’s not the game in particular.

It was fun to watch with my friend, the long time player and enthusiast cum comedian. I’d go to her house to do so again….

In reading a follow up article today in particular I want to quote a snippet from Forbes online. The debate, if you want to call it that, is which woman will earn more money – Petra Kvitova or Eugenie Bouchard – following their Wimbledoning per endorsements.

“Kvitova was the first tennis player born in the 1990s to win a Slam. Now she’s the first to claim two. Despite an affable if shy personality, ridiculous shotmaking and crowning achievements at Wimbledon in 2011 and 2014, Kvitova has lagged the off-court sponsorship dollars less accomplished, more conventionally attractive players like Caroline Wozniacki make.”

Game. Set (not Sex). Match.

This doesn’t need to be true. (And what is conventionally attractive in a global age?)

They’re both supremely talented players. Progress will happen when we get past the Beautiful Athlete Syndrome and into reality that talent – and taste – is blind. Stand up, use our backbones and squash sexualization of personage and focus on talent and ability.

“Martina Navratilova, the Czech-American legend who won a combined 59 major championships in singles and doubles (incidentally, she’s Kvitova’s role model), told FORBES last year, ‘The obvious thing Petra can do is doll herself up: high heels, makeup, premieres. But that’s not who she is.’ “

The obvious thing to do is to do the right thing: stand for quality, hard work, determination, and attitude. Not what her legs looks like, how she wears her hair or anything else that continues and perpetuates the objectification of people.

The Obvious Thing to do her is to change direction of this accepted practice. Petra clearly knows how to take charge. She can change the world for the better if she chooses the obvious thing: command respect.